Geotagging Imagery and Video

IsWHERE is a log of my thoughts, reflections, and news/blog links on the emergence of image and video geospatial tagging. On May5th this year, I opened a second blog to deal with more detailed aspects of tools for FalconView and TalonView can be found at RouteScout. Trends I want to try and follow are the various disruptions resulting from spatial smart-phones, how many GPS devices are out there, smart-cameras, and other related news. And yes, I have a business interest in all of this. My company Red Hen has been pioneering this sort of geomedia for more than a decade.

So beyond a personal blog, I also provide a link to IsWHERE a shareware tool created by Red Hen Systems to readily place geoJPEG or geotagged imagery and soon GEM full motion media kept on your own computer(s) into Google Earth/Map from your File Manager media selection. Works great for geotagged images from Nikon, Ricoh, Sony, iPHONE, Android and all geo-smartphones that can create geotagged images. IsWhere - read about it

IsWhere Visitors

Thursday, December 02, 2010

World's smallest cellphone jammer looks like a pack of cigs

Sometimes you just want to drown out the noise around you — starting with cellphones. While cellphones are great communication devices, people who go overboard, spilling their life stories out loud in public tend to become annoying. Silence them with the world's smallest cellphone jammer.

Disguised as a pack of cigarettes, the so-called "world's smallest cellphone jammer" disables a cluster of frequencies, mainly GSM and 3G signals within a 32-feet radiius — turning crystal clear babbling into ear-splitting static. This could come in handy when trying to block out mommy from shouting at daddy for the umpteenth time. Price for quiet? $46.

In the U.S. cellphone jammers are illegal, with anyone caught with one punishable with a fine of $11,000 and up to a year in jail time. I don't know what the laws are in your neck of the woods, so consider yourself warned before hitting that "Add to Cart" button

World's smallest cellphone jammer looks like a pack of cigs

Sometimes you just want to drown out the noise around you — starting with cellphones. While cellphones are great communication devices, people who go overboard, spilling their life stories out loud in public tend to become annoying. Silence them with the world's smallest cellphone jammer.

Disguised as a pack of cigarettes, the so-called "world's smallest cellphone jammer" disables a cluster of frequencies, mainly GSM and 3G signals within a 32-feet radiius — turning crystal clear babbling into ear-splitting static. This could come in handy when trying to block out mommy from shouting at daddy for the umpteenth time. Price for quiet? $46.

In the U.S. cellphone jammers are illegal, with anyone caught with one punishable with a fine of $11,000 and up to a year in jail time. I don't know what the laws are in your neck of the woods, so consider yourself warned before hitting that "Add to Cart" button

Mio just introduced a GPS driver recorder in Taiwan, a gadget similar to a black box for cars that records a driver’s exact position along with video and audio.

The device attaches to your windshield, near the top, so it’s out of your sight, and faces out so it can record all the action with its wide angle lens. In addition to GPS it also integrates a G-sensor (also known as an accelerometer) so you know how fast your accelerating or decelerating.

The good part is of course the software which overlays all of this information together on a single screen allowing you to figure out how fast the driver entered each turn and how much they stepped on the brakes. It comes with 4GB of internal memory.

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

While the CompactFlash Association scoots along at a maximum transfer rate of 167MB per second under its just released CF6.0 specification, Sandisk, Sony, and Nikon are already looking to the future. The trio have just officially proposed a new memory card format that switches from PATA to the PCI Express serial interface to achieve data transfer rates of up to 500 megabytes per second with a potential to extend maximum storage capacities beyond 2 terabytes. The proposed set of specifications hints at the high performance requirements we'll soon face as DSLRs and camcorders are updated to capture continuous burst shooting of massive RAW images and ever higher definition video. Naturally, the spec also enables photogs to transfer their troves of data more quickly to computers for post processing and combines high-speed transfer with a scaling system to extend battery life. The CompactFlash Association has already announced a new workgroup to study the proposal. Canon's Shigeto Kanda, CFA chairman of the board, had this to say about the proposal:

Future professional photography and video applications will require memory cards with faster read/write speeds. The development of a new high-performance card standard with a serial interface will meet the needs of the professional imaging industry for years to come and open the door for exciting new applications.

Sounds like tacit approval to us. And really, anything that brings Sony and Sandisk together on a future storage format should be seen as a positive step. Unless, of course, you're the SD Card Association or anyone who recently purchased a CFast card.

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Millennial Media has released their Mobile Mix for October, and at first sight, the results are fairly impressive. Before diving in, though, it’s important to note that the statistics are based on ad clicks, rather than a population sample. However, that doesn’t mean they don’t help express the overall trends, so with that in mind, let’s take a quick look at the highlights.

· This month, for the first time, Android tied with iOS as the largest Smartphone OS on our network, with an 8% increase month-over-month and 37% impression share on our network.

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Gartner’s third quarter smartphone data is out today and it looks like Android is continuing its assault on iOS devices. According to the latest report, Android accounted for 25.5 percent of worldwide smartphone sales, making it the No. 2 operating system, rising from a 3.5 percent marketshare in the same quarter in 2009. Apple’s iOS, on the other hand, dropped from last year, from 17.1 percent in 2009 to 16.6 percent in 2010. Symbian took the top spot with 36.6 percent of sales share.

Gartner also said that global mobile phone sales totaled 417 million units in the third quarter of 2010, a 35 percent increase from the third quarter of 2009. Smartphone sales grew 96 percent from the third quarter last year, and smartphones accounted for 19.3 percent of overall mobile phone sales in the third quarter of 2010.

In terms of North America stats, Apple’s share surged past Research In Motion (RIM) but it still falls behind Android. Gartner estimated that Android phones accounted for 75 percent to 80 percent of Verizon Wireless’s smartphone trade in the third quarter of 2010.

Android’s staggering growth isn’t surprising, considering there have been similar reports of the operating system’s ascent up the smartphone food chain. Recent Nielsen data showed that Android devices were the most popular choice for new smartphone purchases over the past six months.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Tablet Computers vs. Smartphones: Which Is the GIS Tool of the Future?

Although tablet computers have been around for more than a decade, without a doubt, 2010 is the Year of the Tablet Computer. Interestingly enough, 2010 is arguably the Year of the Smartphone. Which one will come out on top?

Most authors would tease the reader and have the audience read the entire article before revealing the answer. Nope, not me. I think that smartphones are going to take the GIS prize. But...it doesn't mean that tablet computers are on their way out. On the contrary, tablet computer sales are going to continue to substantially increase. Here is an interesting fact that I read in the past couple of days. Sixty percent of Apple Computer's sales are from products that did not existthree years ago according to a blog post at www.asymco.com. Check out the following chart:

The blog author, Horace Dediu, notes that prior to 2001, the orange band (Mac computers) was all that Apple had to sell. The iPod was introduced in 2001 and, of course, that changed Apple forever, but look at how relatively insignificant iPod sales are today.

Also, take a look at the iPhone (green) and iPad (dark blue) sales on the chart. I think that summarizes the growth of tablet and smartphones not only for Apple, but for the industry in general.

Both smartphones and tablet computers will be used widely for GIS, both for data collection and deploying GIS apps. But at the end of the day, the mobile phone is such a ubiquitous device. Of course, not everyone has a smart mobile phone, but that's changing. International Data Corporation (IDC) predicts that worldwide smartphone shipments will increase to 269.6 million in 2010, up 55.4 percent from 2009.

To offer some perspective, smartphones shipments are still less than one quarter of all mobile phone shipments. Global mobile phone shipments in Q2 2010 were 308 million units and growing at about 13 percent over Q2 2009, according to Strategic Analytics.

Twice this week I've had readers e-mail me with questions/comments regarding smartphones for GIS data collection. To me, there are two issues that hinder GIS data collection using smart phones.

1. The smartphone operating systems. There are two many of them. Symbian, iOS, Android, Windows Mobile, RIM (BlackBerry), PalmOS, etc.

The software developers can't afford to support every operating system. You can say what you want about Microsoft, but the Windows operating system for desktop computers has really made it easy (and relatively cheap) for software developers and has been a tremendous benefit to society in the last 15 years.

Too many different operating systems on smartphones makes it difficult for GIS software developers. They end up supporting one and it is usually the one they think has the best chance of success in the future (or is easiest to support). At this point, Windows Mobile is the platform of choice. Ironically, Windows Mobile only accounts for about 10 percent of the market share. Take a look at the chart below from Canalys.

Granted, the chart is dated, and I bet the iPhone, Android and Windows numbers are a bit higher now, but you see the problem.

If you're a software developer and you have to decide which operating system(s) to support, which one(s) do you choose?

2. Limited GPS and Bluetooth support.

If you've ever used the GPS functionality in a smartphone, it's very convenient. I don't always have my PND (Portable Navigation Device) with me, but I always have my phone with me. If I need directions, I just crank up the Sprint Navigation software, type in the address, and viola! Granted, the GPS chip takes a few minutes to fire up and its responsiveness isn't what my PND delivers, but it gets me to where I want to go and it is super-convenient.

Given the convenience, it's not surprising that, when geospatial people find out their smartphone has GPS capability, they start thinking about how it can be used for GIS data collection. At that point, accuracy becomes an issue. For citizen reporting such as City Sourced app, the smartphone's internal GPS chip is just fine. But, for someone wanting higher accuracy GPS data such as 1-3 meters or even sub-meter accuracy, the smartphone internal GPS chip can't do it, not even close.

Ok, no problem. Just connect via Bluetooth to a separate, high-performance Bluetooth GPS receiver, right? Not so fast.

The smartphone makers don't do a very good job of supporting Bluetooth. Typically, they provide Bluetooth support for hands-free ear buds and other common accessories, but not general-purpose Bluetooth devices like a GPS receiver. What a pain. So close, yet so far. Imagine being able to run your favorite GIS data collection program on your smartphone and having high-accuracy GPS receiver bluetoothed to your phone? That would be a pretty cost-effective solution.

Monday, October 18, 2010

Mobile nav usage up 57% to 44 million

Oct 18, 2010

According to a new Berg Insight report, the number of mobile subscribers using a turn-by-turn navigation service or application on their handset increased by 57% between H1-2009 and H1-2010 to reach 44 million worldwide.

The global subscriber base is forecast to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 33.1% to reach 195 million users in 2015.

In the US, where GPS handset penetration is above 70%, nav services for mobile phones has already reached about 8% of the total mobile subscriber base. For a large percentage of these users, navigation is part of a service bundle together with a voice and data plan from their mobile operator.

In response to the launch of free nav applications for smartphones by Nokia and Google, more and more operators worldwide are now introducing bundled navigation services to offset the cost for end users.

Navigation service providers and mobile operators are also trying to monetise services by introducing various feature and content up-sells that allow users to customise navigation applications to suit their personal needs.

"Mobile operators and service providers are now accelerating their efforts to create differentiated navigation experiences with unique local content to compete against free services", said André Malm, senior analyst at Berg Insight.

He added that integration of nav services with other applications to stimulate usage will become increasingly important for mobile operators seeking additional revenues from location-based advertising. Since relatively few subscribers need turn-by-turn guidance on a daily basis, complementary features such as social networking, restaurant and event guides improve stickiness.

To find out more about the latest trends in navigation, attendNavigation Strategies USA at the Sheraton in San Jose on January 25th - 26th, 2011

Saturday, October 16, 2010

Since we can not stop sharing about our whereabouts and what we are doing, we need to connect instantly and stay connected always.

Facebook, twitter, foursquare and so on, let us announce the world all the great stuff we are doing, amazing stuff that we have seen.

Just like our phones got smarter, so did our cameras. Especially with GPS capabilities, cameras are helping us stay connected. Now we have GPS digital cameras. So we can keep sharing.

Some of these GPS cameras not just record where exactly you took that picture, but they also will let you connect instantly. You can also synchronize with Google Maps and get a bird eye view or from the direction in which the photo was taken (Sony HX5V).

The internal clock will be adjusted to the local time of the place where the camera is (Sony HX5V and Panasonic DMC-ZS7).

GPS enabled cameras will let you them as fully functional GPS device (Casio EX-H20G). You can upload your picture to Web, to the selected photo sharing sites ( Picturetown for Nikon Coolpix, Picasa for Samsung).

Some cameras (Ricoh G700) will need optional GPS unit to be attached. They may also have WiFi, Bluetooth capabilties (Samsung CL65, Ricoh G700).

With all the ones we reviewed Nikon Coolpix has the heftiest price tag of $1000 at Amazon.com. Panasonic DMC-ZS7 is the most economical one; $249. Samsung is the easiest to carry around, it weighs only 5.5 oz. For most detailed pictures are offered by Panasonic thanks to its 14.5 MP and 12X optical and 4X digital zoom.

Panasonic with its technical capabilities and price is a standout on our review. Apparently we are not the only one who likes it, it is #26 on Amazon.com’s best selling list on electronics.

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

There's not much there at the moment, but Sony's just opened a new Android developer site for its Google TV devices -- a possible hint that Sony's offerings will have some unique and different features from the Logitech Revue. Our interest is definitely piqued -- we'll let you know everything that happens during our Sony Google TV event liveblog starting at 530PM ET!

Wednesday, October 06, 2010

Oh, IE, it pains us to do this to you. You who once so mightily won in the battle against Netscape Navigator now seem to be losing your war against a battalion of upstarts, relatively fresh faces like Firefox and Chrome. According to StatCounter, IE's global usage stats have fallen to 49.87 percent, a fraction of a tick beneath half. Firefox makes up the lion share of the rest, at 31.5 percent, while Chrome usage tripled since last year, up to 11.54 percent. Two years ago IE had two thirds of the global market locked down, and even if Internet Explorer 9is the best thing since ActiveX, well, we just don't see the tide of this battle turning without MS calling in some serious reinforcements.

Update: If you needed more proof of Chrome's increasing popularity, we got a tip on this report from Softpediaconfirming that Chrome is the fastest growing browser of the moment. Firefox is more or less flat and, well, you know all about how IE is faring.

Thursday, September 30, 2010

A survey by renowned survey supplier ChangeWave shows how Android is rapidly catching iPhone in terms of smartphone mindshare, with future-phone-buyers now as likely to buy Android as one of Apple’s fashionable handsets.

The below chart shows a massive swing from iPhone to Android over the last three months, as Google’s OS closes the next-phone gap from 20% to just 1%.

Read more, and see more up-pointing graphs of GLORY over on ChangeWave’s blog. Poor old Windows Mobile. Poor old Palm.

Couldn’t resist putting this one up as well, which breaks down the rise in popularity of Android over the phone’s lifetime.

Monday, September 20, 2010

US Topo

Topographic Maps for the Nation

Mark Newell

US Topo is the next generation of topographic maps from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Arranged in the familiar 7.5-minute quadrangle format, digital US Topo maps are designed to look and feel (and perform) like the traditional paper topographic maps for which the USGS is so well known. In contrast to paper-based maps, US Topo maps provide modern technical advantages that support faster, wider public distribution and enable basic, on-screen geographic analysis for all users.

US Topo maps are available free on the Web. Each map quadrangle is constructed in oPDF® format from key layers of geographic data (orthoimagery, roads, geographic names, topographic contours, and hydrographic features) found in The National Map.

US Topo quadrangles can be printed from personal computers or plotters as complete, full-sized, maps or in customized sections, in a user-desired specific format. Paper copies of the maps can also be purchased from the USGS Store. Download links and a users guide are featured on the US Topo Web site.

US Topo users can turn geographic data layers on and off as needed; they can zoom in and out to highlight specific features or see a broader area. File size for each digital 7.5-minute quadrangle, about 15-20 megabytes, is suitable for most users. Associated electronic tools for geographic analysis are available free for download

Considering that Steve Ballmer himself said that Microsoft "missed a cycle" in the smartphone sales universe, we guess it's not too shocking to see Android leap past Windows Mobile and Friends in ComScore's latest US smartphone report. If you'll recall, we saw back in July that Google was tailing Microsoft by the slimmest of margins, and now that the latest data is live, it's clearer than ever that Android is rising while the competition is slipping. The research firm's MobiLens report found that Google's market share in the US smartphone sector surged five percent in the three month average ending April 2010, while RIM sank 1.8 percent, Apple 1.3 percent, Microsoft 2.2 percent and Palm... well, Palm remained flat with just 4.9 percent of the pie. Of course, one has to assume that Microsoft loyalists are holding off on upgrades until Windows Phone 7 hits the market, but there's little doubt that the flurry of higher-end Android phones has done nothing but help Google's cause. And if Gingerbreadactually brings support for serious 3D gaming? Look out, world.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

My TracksMy Tracks allows you to record GPS tracks and view live statistics,such as time, speed, distance, and elevation, whilst hiking, biking or running. The application includes the option to export your tracks to Google Spreadsheets and visualise them on Google My Maps.

My Tracks also allows you to view the elevation profile of a track by time or distance, create waypoints on your track and spilt tracks into subtracks.

Seems like an interesting topic to me... generally if my credit or value of privacy has altered as a result of the sort of nonsense noted below, I would would swear out a crimal complaint on Google.

If a Google employee rampages through my email, Google Voice or other data for no justifiable reason I expect a lot more from the company than simply terminating them. There needs to be criminal charges brought as well.

We’ve asked Google if they’ve pressed charges against either of the two engineers they’ve fired for inappropriately accessing user data, and they won’t comment.

So much of our life is lived online, and so much of our highly sensitive personal data is stored on Google’s servers, that it is absurd that there aren’t more dire consequences facing those that choose to molest that data. If a Google employee broke into my home and stole files from my office they’d go to jail. And frankly I’d be far less concerned with that situation than if they were perusing my email for entertainment during their lunch break.

A few days ago, for no particular reason, I asked people on Twitter if they’d trust Google with their money and data if Google launched a bank. The overwhelming response was “no.” Surprised, I wrote “wow, most of you say no way you’d trust Google Bank with your money. I certainly would. My bank sucks.”

I think I’d like to amend my answer. My bank certainly does suck. But I’m pretty sure they’d have an employee arrested if they, say, accessed my data and tried to exhort me with it.

Monday, September 13, 2010

In the smartphone world, it is generally a good thing to keep everyone on the latest operating systems by pushing out upgrades. To the extent that iPhone or Android can get their installed base of users on the latest and greatest OS, the more those users can enjoy new apps built to take advantage of the new features of the OS. But when it comes to pushing software upgrades, Android has the upper hand because it can push them over the air, whereas the iPhone still requires users to download the upgrade to their computer first and then transfer it over to their iPhones with a cable.

Some people just never upgrade. Apple released its latest iPhone operating system, iOS 4, back in June. It came installed on new the iPhone 4, but was also pushed through iTunes to existing iPhone 3GS owners. Yet two months after the release, more than 20 percent of iPhone 3GS users still had not upgraded, according to anestimate by mobile analytics firm Localytics.

Meanwhile, less than 5 percent of Droid users had not upgraded only two weeks after the availability of the Froyo version of Android 2.2. (At the same point in time, 44 percent of 3GS iPhones had not yet upgraded). The reason for Android’s more successful upgrade rate is over-the-air upgrades were rolled out over a short period of time, requiring less work from users.

The chart above shows the OS upgrade rates for the 3GS and the Droid during the first two weeks after the software became available. While 30 percent of iPhone 3GS user upgraded right away in the first two days, getting the rest of the users onboard was an uphill battle. Eliminating the two-step process would help get everyone on the same OS faster. On the other hand, I wonder if that actually helped sell more iPhone 4s.

gvSIG Mini development team is proud to announce the release of the stable version gvSIG Mini for Android 1.0.gvSIG Mini is an open source project (GNU/GPL) aimed at Java and Android mobile phones. Released version is 1.0.0 for Android. This version offers, among other features, the ability of a direct download of maps from the phone to the storage card, for a further map displaying in offline mode, with no data connection.gvSIG Mini is a free viewer of free aceess maps based on tiles (OpenStreetMap, YahooMaps, Microsoft Bing, ...), with an off-line mode, a WMS & WMS-C client, address and POI search, routes and many more things.Main latest features of 1.0.0 version are the following ones:

Map download directly from the mobile phone, for off-line usage.

Off-line mode for viewing maps with no data connection.

Multitouch support.

New map rendering system, much more agile.

Standard Android search button support.

New layers available by default.

UK Ordnance Survey official maps (rendered by OS).

Settings menu with many options.

New cache options.

Android 2.2 support (now from 1.5 to 2.2).

More than 20 bugs have also been fixed.gvSIG Mini has been developed by Prodevelop. Also available at Android Market.More information at:

Saturday, September 11, 2010

Can you hear that? It’s the sound of war. Better choose your side soon, too. The tablet wars are going to get nasty.

Apple’s army is prepped, already backed by over 3 million zealous iPad owners. But the Google Android horde is quickly banding together and will soon offer countless weapons from several major CE houses and dozens of smaller camps. Google is also quietly forming the stealthy Chrome OS platoon that will likely enter the battle a bit late, but shouldn’t be forgotten, ether.

Then there’s the suit & tie brigade with their trusty BlackBerry holstered on their hips, ready to be tethered to the coming BlackPad. Don’t forget about the wildcard: The HP-produced, webOS-powered PalmPad no doubt has a couple of tricks, enough to put up a decent fight. Then there’s the battle-tested Windows that might still be able to fire a few direct shots.

The tablet wars are coming and not everyone is going to survive. There simply isn’t enough market share to support the five or more upcoming tablet platforms.

Friday, September 10, 2010

Hello, obvious! Anyone who has actually used an Android-based tablet for any length of time would probably tell you that the experience is far from optimal. It works, sure, but it doesn't take a CSC major to understand that Google's existing builds of Android were crafted for smartphones and nothing more. Thankfully for those who are tired of arguing the point, Hugo Barra, director of products for mobile at Google, is stepping up to the plate and giving you some backing. Quoted over at Tech Radar, Hugo noted that "Android is an open platform, and we saw at IFA 2010 all sorts of devices running Android, so it's already running on tablets; but the way Android Market works is it's not going to be available on devices that don't allow applications to run correctly." He followed up by proclaiming that "Froyo is not optimized for use on tablets," and while he wouldn't go so far as to affirm that Gingerbread would be built for use on the aforementioned form factor, he did say that the company's working "to ensure our users have [the] right experience." How's that strike you, Galaxy Tab?

Android, iOS to surpass BlackBerry in OS share by 2011

Both Android and iOS will have overtaken the BlackBerry for market share within the next year, Gartner predicted on Friday. It saw Google overtaking RIM's BlackBerry this year for the second-place spot, but by 2011 expected both Android and the iPhone to have outrun the BlackBerry in 2011. Android will have extended its lead over iOS by shipping almost 92 million phones next year, or 22.2 percent share, where Apple will have moved under 71 million (17.1 percent); RIM would ship just 62 million (down to 15 percent).

They also expected a slight bounce back for Windows Phone 7 to over 21 million phones or 5.2 percent share, but that this wouldn't translate to Nokia's preferred Symbian platform. It would keep losing influence and fall to 34.2 percent of smartphones. Gartner didn't expect Windows Phone 7's momentum to last, as it would fall to a new low of 3.9 percent by 2014.Most of Google's success would come from a push into the low end; Samsung, but also LG, Motorola and Sony Ericsson, will have pushed deeper into budget Android phones even this year. The researchers didn't expect closed platforms like the iPhone and BlackBerry to get significant traction in the long term as the advantage of having multiple phone makers would push open platforms like Android and keep Symbian alive. Apple typically doesn't participate in the low end; RIM does with phones like the Curve 3G, but it has been slipping at the high end.

Thursday, September 09, 2010

New EarthExplorerThe United States Geological Survey are using Google Maps to display a large number of data sets that can be downloaded from USGS. The data available to download fits in to three main broad categories; Aerial Photography, Map Products and Satellite Products.

The map lets you explore the available data for a specific location. Once you have selected a location you can search against one or more data sets at the same time. You can obtain information about each of the data sets by clicking on the information icon next to each data set.

The Results tab lists the results of your search. 10 records for each data set are displayed at a time. If you then select the ‘download’ button you can export the metadata in multiple formats including KML, shapefile, and delimited text file.

Tuesday, September 07, 2010

The battle for dominance in the smartphone market will shake out in the next five years and when it’s finished, Google (GOOG), not Apple (AAPL), will emerge the victor. That’s the outlook from Piper Jaffray which sees Google’s Android OS aggressively capturing market share in the years ahead.

“We estimate Google will control 14.9 percent of the smartphone market through Android in 2010, growing to 23.2 percent in 2012,” the research house says in a new report. “For Apple, we expect the iPhone 15.9 percent of the smartphone market in 2010, growing to 17.6 percent in 2012.”And five years from now Android will likely control over half of the smartphone market. Meanwhile, Apple will hold between 20-30 percent.

And what of the other major players in the market — Nokia (NOK) and Research and Motion (RIMM)? Where do they figure in this future smartphone world order?

In the Android camp, according Piper Jaffray. How else could the OS claim a 50 percent market share so quickly?

“We believe long term both RIM and Nokia will be share losers in the smartphone space because they do not have a core software competency,” the firm explains. “Over time, we do not see the benefit of RIM and Nokia continuing to push proprietary software that can’t compete with the market and eventually expect one or both to capitulate and move to utilizing third party software. … Ultimately, we believe Android is likely to control over half of the smartphone market in the next five years. Apple’s essentially two phone focus (low price 3GS and higher price 4) will likely limit how much of the market Apple can control and we believe ultimately Apple’s smartphone market share tops out between 20-30%, which still offers significant room to grow.”

The battle for dominance in the smartphone market will shake out in the next five years and when it’s finished, Google (GOOG), not Apple (AAPL), will emerge the victor. That’s the outlook from Piper Jaffray which sees Google’s Android OS aggressively capturing market share in the years ahead.

“We estimate Google will control 14.9 percent of the smartphone market through Android in 2010, growing to 23.2 percent in 2012,” the research house says in a new report. “For Apple, we expect the iPhone 15.9 percent of the smartphone market in 2010, growing to 17.6 percent in 2012.”And five years from now Android will likely control over half of the smartphone market. Meanwhile, Apple will hold between 20-30 percent.

And what of the other major players in the market — Nokia (NOK) and Research and Motion (RIMM)? Where do they figure in this future smartphone world order?

In the Android camp, according Piper Jaffray. How else could the OS claim a 50 percent market share so quickly?

“We believe long term both RIM and Nokia will be share losers in the smartphone space because they do not have a core software competency,” the firm explains. “Over time, we do not see the benefit of RIM and Nokia continuing to push proprietary software that can’t compete with the market and eventually expect one or both to capitulate and move to utilizing third party software. … Ultimately, we believe Android is likely to control over half of the smartphone market in the next five years. Apple’s essentially two phone focus (low price 3GS and higher price 4) will likely limit how much of the market Apple can control and we believe ultimately Apple’s smartphone market share tops out between 20-30%, which still offers significant room to grow.”

Friday, September 03, 2010

Media measurement and Web analytics company Quantcast has some interesting numbers on mobile browsing in the United States, and it’s preparing to release some of those statistics, across vendors. Earlier today, the company put up a teaser blog post, showing two graphs, one of them representing the share of mobile Web consumption in the US per mobile OS.

Following an announcement from Toshiba at IFA yesterday that it has developed SDHC memory cards based on the new UHS-1 standard, the SD Association today outlined its plans for its forthcoming SD 4.0 standard. The breakthrough means that SD 4.0 can support real-time HD video playback, whether from a media player or a camcorder. The new SD 4.0 standard is based on a dual-row pin memory design that achieves bus interface speeds of up to 300MBps, or nearly three times faster than UHS-1's 105MBps..

Toshiba has revealed new SDHC memory cards with the Ultra High Speed I (UHS-I) standard that enables them to reach maximum data read rates of 95MBps and write speeds of 80MBps. This makes them the fastest SDHC UHS-I memory cards in the world. The cards can thus far only use these speeds in USB 3.0 readers, as no camera can fully use

Wednesday, September 01, 2010

Back in May 2010, The Edinburgh College of Art ran a workshop to explore the publics apprehension fortagging technologies. It was very successful and provided insights in to the fears and concerns around RFID and the tagging of objects and people.

The day was organised in such a way as to allow participants to take part in semi-structured discussions that were interspersed by presentations and demonstrations to further inform debate. Debate was complex and opinions upon the benefits and threats for tagging became more subtle throughout the workshop, with individuals views swinging dramatically from blind enthusiasm to extreme paranoia.

Since then the workshop was documented and written up to create a 66 page book on the outcomes of the workshop.

The book is well worth a download, it covers topics ranging from the Internet of Old Things through to RFID and Privacy. For more on tagging and related technologies take a look at http://www.youtotem.org/.